Union boss says Common Entrance delay best decision for all

Class Four students across the island will have an extra eight weeks to prepare for this year’s 11-Plus examination and the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) is fully backing the Ministry of Education’s decision to delay the test, although saying it should have been done earlier.

BUT president Rudy Lovell told Barbados TODAY that having the exam on June 27 rather than May 2 as initially announced would “help to reduce the psychological stress” on all involved.

However, he said if Ministry officials had done their due diligence and met with primary school principals and teachers, they would have known students would not be ready for the Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination (BSSEE) and would have postponed it before now.

The Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training announced the postponement of the exam in a statement on the Barbados Government Information Service website on Friday.

“The change comes as a result of concerns expressed recently by parents/guardians, teachers and principals regarding the previous date, as well as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years, which included interruptions in the teaching and learning environment,” it said. 

Lovell confirmed that over the past weeks, several teachers had reached out to him expressing concern that students were not prepared to take the test in May.

“I have been having conversations with several Class Four teachers who contacted me and indicated that the students were not ready. From the beginning, the Ministry of Education should have held a meeting with all Class Four teachers to determine the readiness of the children. Furthermore, discussions should have been held with all principals to determine the students’ state of readiness,” he said.

The union boss said children were now playing catchup in their studies as online learning during the past three years of the COVID-19 pandemic was a major challenge.

“We note that the Ministry of Education had previously stated that students suffered learning loss, and one would have thought that they would have taken the opportunity initially to allow for additional teaching time, as this cohort of children had been online since Class 1. It’s no secret that students were being assisted at home while online and they are now playing catchup in the face-to-face environment,” he said. 

“The initial date was too early, especially with sports this term. Students need to be able to participate in sports while still preparing for their exams and the additional time would assist.”

Lovell said the additional time would benefit pupils tremendously.

“The BUT is happy that there was a change in the date and believes that this will help to reduce the psychological stress of students, parents, and teachers, and allow for additional preparation time for the exam,” he said.

The Ministry said the BSSEE will be held at the 21 secondary schools across the island.

It noted that while the date for the exam has changed, all deadlines for the submission of information to the Examinations Section remain the same. 

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb